This enabled him to open up a commanding 14-point lead in the title chase over his brother Ralf who finished a distant third. "I did not expect such domination," admitted Schumacher.

He provided Ferrari with their first one-two since Hungary last year and their first in Imola for two decades.

"It had been close in qualifying and I expected the race to be more difficult. It's a special day for me and the history of Ferrari and I am proud of that.

"We will open a bottle of champagne and have a glass together to celebrate but being so early in the season our mind is already on the next grand prix in Spain."

Schumacher's victory was his third in four races this season and his fourth on the Italian track.

It was also the 56th of his extraordinary 166-race career and few would bet against him claiming that record-equalling fifth drivers' crown this season.

The German briefly relinquished the lead to Barrichello for a lap during his two pit-stops but otherwise dominated the 62-lap race as the superiority of the new car debuted in Brazil last time out left his rivals trailing.

"We didn't see the potential of the car in Brazil because of the nature of that circuit," said Schumacher, who in some record books is still level on 96 races with Gerhard Berger because his engine blew in warm-up for the 1996 race in France. "Here we could show it more."

Schumacher's younger brother finished well-adrift in third spot - team-mate Juan Pablo Montoya was 44 secs behind in fourth after an anonymous afternoon - and admitted the Williams-BMW outfit have much work to do.